When plants self-sow, we may look at their offspring as weeds or as gifts. Recently, while appreciating robust stems of perennial pollinator plants emerging in a well-established border, my gaze drifted to a stand of young swamp milkweed (Aesclepias incarnata) that had sprung up in a small clearing at the border’s back edge. Three mother plants had their own design for the space—if not consciously, then opportunistically. In autumn, a profusion of round brown seeds suspended on silky white parachutes found fertile ground and grew unnoticed until late spring. “A miniature meadow-in-the-making,” I mused.
Also known as rose milkweed, Aesclepias incarnata will thrive in New England in any soil rich in organic matter, not only swamps. In the photograph, above, a tiger swallowtail butterfly sips rose milkweed nectar. Usually associated with monarch butterflies, see what can hatch in your miniature meadow when there’s a milkweed plant: See my illustrated Edge story of a swamp milkweed hosting the life cycle of a monarch butterfly from egg to caterpillar to fanciful chrysalis to emergent adult. Rosy-colored flower buds have appeared at the tops of swamp milkweed plants, beginning their bloom time.
Wild Bergamot (Monarda fistulosa), a bee balm also native to New England, is adaptable to a variety of settings, including dry conditions. In the spirit of Pollinator Week, June 19 through 25, in this photo essay, you will notice the interdependence of plants and a diversity of insects. In wild and cultivated landscapes, stop to marvel when hummingbirds and insects fly in for surprise visits to flowering plants.
New York ironweed (Vernonia noveboracensis) is a giant among flora known for attracting butterflies. It is shown here visited by a giant swallowtail butterfly, the first I had ever seen. In a sunny border, the oldest ironweed in my landscape flowers profusely in a circle of strong, seven-feet-tall stems. A newer planting in a less sunny, and perhaps less fertile, spot grows to four feet. I first observed ironweed at stream’s edge, growing with equally stunning and purple flowering vervain (Verbena hastata).
Both New York ironweed and vervain grow in wetland and cultivated garden settings. Vervain, native to all New England states, blooms on delicate spires atop slender four-feet-tall stems. According to the native plant website GoBotany, “The most unusual of many traditional uses of blue vervain is [was? ji] among the Iroquois, who used a cold infusion of mashed leaves as a witchcraft medicine ‘to make obnoxious persons go away.'”
My first attraction to the white form of the dramatic swamp rose mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos) was while canoeing the small Lake Lenape in New Jersey. Three-feet-tall bushes dappled with large, white, saucer-shaped blossoms—brilliant in sunlight—ringed the shoreline. While promoted exclusively for wet ground, rose mallow thrives in raised beds rich in organic matter. Widely stated, “The rose mallow bee (Ptilothrix bombiformis) is oligolectic on swamp rose-mallow (i.e., it pollinates this species and only a few others).” Grow this plant for the life of the rose mallow bee! And to enjoy the unique closed buds, sensuous opening of the buds, and luxurious blooms. Native to eastern Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and most of Connecticut, swamp rose mallow is present in on the border of western Massachusetts.
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